Act as a ‘think tank’ for inclusive development: BD Mishra to NEC

ITANAGAR: Arunachal Pradesh Governor Brig (retd) Dr BD Mishra on Sunday exuded confidence that the North East Council (NEC) will act as a think tank to usher in inclusive development in the region.

Addressing the 68th Plenary of NEC at Guwahati, the Governor highlighted the challenges of the State in different sectors including educational infrastructure, road and air communication, innovation, transparency, sustainable development, improving the policing and countering insurgency and anti-national activities.

“The NEC is a forum, which provides its member states, an opportunity to come together for synergizing their efforts and enhance their developmental speed, in the North East region,” he said.

Dr Mishra apprised the Council that the biggest problem which the State is facing now is the lack of robust network connectivity — on land, air, internet and mobile — which, he said, hampers the developmental needs as well as security parameters of the State. He said, skill development, infrastructure and entrepreneurship development facilities are in a nascent stage in the State.

“Educational and health care infrastructure development in Arunachal Pradesh need extensive effort. There is absence of quality and specialized medical service facilities in remote and distant areas of the State,” he pointed out. Taking up the challenges of the agrarian community, the Governor said that aggregation of agro-horticulture produce and providing adequate backward and forward linkages in the agriculture sector still remain a daunting task.

Highlighting the avenues for economic growth, Dr Mishra said that remarkable opportunities are available in the Tourism sector, which due to lack of connectivity in the State need to be actualised.

“The huge hydro power potential existing in the State is yet to be tapped. The huge arable land potential in the State, due to primitive ways of tilling is laying waste. Industrial sector has not picked up as yet which is a major source of employment for a developing State,” he said.

While urging the Council to assist in the Banking sector, the Governor said that due to the poor credit profile of the State, people are not able to start new business ventures. The Credit Deposit Ratio of banks is less than 30 as against a norm of 60, which shows that the outreach of the Banking sector and financial inclusion in the State is grossly inadequate, he pointed out

Dr Mishra expressed his concern that insurgents from other States are considering Arunachal Pradesh a safe haven for their hideouts, extortion, and fresh recruitment operations.

“There is an intense drive by various insurgent groups to pick local youth from Tirap, Changlang and Longding districts for their recruitment,” he said, and requested for cooperation from the Union Home Ministry (MHA) to provide assistance to the State and bolster counter-insurgency operations, by providing men, material, and technological help.

The Governor also requested the Home ministry for upgrading the existing facilities in Police Training College, district police lines and setting up of Crime and Criminal Tracking Network and Systems (CCTNS) in all districts in order to bring visible reforms in policing in the State.

Chaired by Union Home Minister Amit Shah, the plenary was also attended by DoNER Minister Jitendra Singh, Governors and Chief Ministers of all the North-Eastern States besides senior officials.

The two-day plenary will deliberate on the progress of ongoing projects, outlays by the Central ministries in the north-eastern region and plans for the coming years